From the Desk of KTEC:
Classic Rock Coming Back
You hear a guitar riff and the iconic nasally high notes singing to you about a lady in the desert. A young man walks on stage in a tunic and with medallion hanging from his neck, curly hair and skin tight pants.
Your first thought was Robert Plant of Led Zeppelin, wasn’t it? Nope, try Josh Kiszka of the renowned rock renaissance band, Greta Van Fleet.
The band has worked to make it clear that they are not trying to “copy” Led Zeppelin, but have expressed their respect for the band and the 70’s rock influences. One of many influences however, they draw from early blues and soul. The band is comprised of 3 brothers and their long time childhood friend. Twins, Josh and Jake Kiszka take on vocals and guitar and are joined by their brother Sam Kiszka on bass/keys, with friend Danny Wagner behind the drums. The guys started playing in their garage in a small town in Michigan, and struggling to be heard over the booming music was how Josh’s Zeppelin-esque scream was born.
Although the band sounds like they came from the past, they’re fairly new to the music scene. The band started to take off in 2017 and has been steadily gaining momentum. They’ve produced two EPs and a recent studio album (2018), they’ve been nominated for 4 Grammys, and are currently touring internationally.
What’s fascinating about this “rebirth” of rock n roll is that the younger generations (yes, those pesky millennials) are finally getting a taste of what our parents experienced: Big, bombastic drums and exploding guitar solos, a screaming shirtless frontman dripping with sweat, and music that’s filled with so much palpable passion and emotion. While doing some research on the band, a YouTube user’s comment stuck out – “Wow, I’m 54 and I feel like I’m 15 again”. The journey of music discovery is so important in a young teen’s life and has unfortunately been diminished by Top 40 radio hits, singles taking precedence over full length albums, and music with the same monotonous choruses. But Greta Van Fleet is providing this experience again for today’s generation. We’re sitting down, putting down the phone, and really listening to an album for everything that it’s worth.
People criticized Guns N Roses for being a little too “Led Zeppelin-ish”, they said Lady Gaga sounds a little too much like Madonna, and Christina Aguilera tried too hard to sound like Mariah Carey. Influences are everywhere and comparisons are inevitable, but the beauty of art is that it belongs to the artist. The men of Greta Van Fleet are creating something special and all their own, have a listen:
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greta_Van_Fleet